Blondies

Since our cinnamon bun recipe from King Arthur Flour's was such a hit, I thought I'd use one of their recipes for some blondies. Now I'm pretty confident that I'll keep continue using recipes from their site, because these were amazing. Besides..um... one trademark Stephanie screw-up, these were really simple and tasty.

What was that screw-up you ask?

Sadie eyeing up the waste.

This recipe calls for one pound of brown sugar, & 1/4 c granulated sugar but once we had got to the last step, ready to throw these babies in the oven, Dan saw the unopened box of brown sugar sitting on the table. OOPS! We tried to mix it in last minute, but started another batch at that moment just in case it didn't work (yes, we have two pounds of brown sugar in the pantry at all times). It was a good thing we made that bake-up batch because the 1st faulty batch never cooked. It stayed in the oven for over and hour and was still liquid when we finally decided to throw it away. At least we got a real good laugh out of it.

But as you can see, the second batch went just swimmingly:

They were moist, sweet, and perfect. Dan brought them into work, and they were a hugeee hit. I definitely recommend this recipe if you are craving blondies.

Blondie Bars from King Arthur Flour's Website.

1 1/3 sticks unsalted butter, melted
1 pound brown sugar, light or dark (we used light)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vinegar, white or cider
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon espresso powder
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 3/4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
8 ounces chocolate chunks
2 cups coarsely chopped nuts (But we used 3/4 c mini reeses pieces)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan.

Combine the butter, sugars, salt, and vinegar, stirring to combine. If the mixture is super-hot from the melted butter, let it cool to lukewarm. Add the eggs, espresso powder, vanilla, and baking powder, beating well. Stir in the flour, mixing thoroughly, then the chocolate chunks and nuts.

Scoop the batter into the prepared pan, using your wet fingers to smooth the top. Bake the bars for about 38 minutes, until the top is golden and shiny, and the center is just barely baked through. Use the sharp tip of a knife to peek into the center; it should be very damp, but not unbaked. Yes, this puts a hole right in the center of the pan of bars; but you're going to cut them into squares anyway, and just assume the one with the hole will be yours—baker's privilege!

Remove the bars from the oven, and cool to lukewarm before cutting. A plastic knife will glide right through these sticky bars without tearing them. Serve with ice cream, if desired. To serve bars warm after they've cooled, reheat briefly in the microwave, or slip them into a toaster bag and pop into the toaster.

Yeahhh.... as usual...

How could we resist?